The regime deported 52 political prisoners in exchange for sanctions relief

~ Nikita Ivansky ~

Anarchist Nikolai (Mikola) Dziadok was among 52 political prisoners released and deported from Belarus to Lithuania on 11 September, following negotiations between dictator Alexander Lukashenko and US envoy John Colae. In return, the US lifted sanctions on the state airline Belavia and renewed calls to reopen its embassy in Minsk—one of the largest prisoner buyouts since the 2020 uprising.

Dziadok, arrested in 2020 and held in torture conditions and near-total isolation, had faced up to 13 years in prison on charges of organising “Autonomous Action Belarus”, labelled a criminal group by the regime. He had previously served five years (2010–2015) before being pardoned as one of the last prisoners of that period. Although his release had been nominally scheduled for April, a new case was opened against him, prolonging his detention.

Like the others freed, Dziadok was taken by bus to the Lithuanian border and expelled. Belarusian KGB officers tore up his passport, as they did for several prisoners that day, deliberately complicating their lives in exile. Most of those deported had no legal status in the EU, though Lithuania has granted them temporary visas.

Anarchists from the Belarusian group Pramen described the deportations as “a new punishment: instead of jail time, they’re now facing indefinite exile to EU countries. Lukashenko’s regime is trying to get rid of not only the prisoners themselves, but also their families, kids, and loved ones, who’ll be forced to leave Belarus after five years of fighting against prison”.

Not all accepted the deal. Opposition leader Mikola Statkevich refused to leave Belarus when brought to the “neutral” border zone, reportedly telling KGB agents: “I don’t care about your kolkhoz leader”—a jab at Lukashenko’s Soviet-era past. After several hours, masked men took him back into Belarus. His fate remains unknown.

Talks of trading political prisoners for sanctions have circulated for months. Liberal opposition circles in exile are even discussing a temporary camp in Lithuania to host further releases. More than 1,300 people remain imprisoned in Belarus today, including 24 anarchists and antifascists.